Echoes of the Past
by Drair
Summary: Cagalli, a present-day student, is experiencing recurring dreams of being a young lord named Ailwin in medieval Europe. Past and present collide as familiar faces appear. Now she must uncover who killed her in the past before history repeats itself again.
1. Chapter 1: Fate

**Disclaimer: **Some parts of this story take place in medieval Europe. Please excuse my historical inaccuracies. I did absolutely no research before I wrote this.

**Synopsis:** Cagalli is a modern-day college student. In her last year, she begins to experience recurring dreams of being a young lord in medieval Europe. Past and present collide as familiar faces begin to pop up. Now she must solve the mystery of who killed her in the past before it's too late. AxC

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><p>Ch. 1: Memories<p>

_It was cold... so very cold._

_The room was sideways, and in the nebulous haze of his mind, he realized that he was lying flat on the icy stone floor. Beneath him, he could feel a warm liquid beginning to pool around his body. His blood was draining from the wound on his chest as he tried to gather his thoughts. He was going into shock. In the back of his mind, he knew that the injury was fatal. He was not going to make it._

_From above him, he heard the sound of panicked sobbing. Though he could not see who the person was, instinctively, he knew, and the knowledge sent a rush of emotions into his wounded chest. Anger, sadness, hatred, and betrayal... The negative emotions swirled intensely within his bleeding heart, and with the last of his dying breath, he croaked, "You... Why..."_

_The sobbing became louder now, more desperate and laced with hysteria. His vision was blurring, his breath was coming in ragged pants, and he heard his still sobbing killer turning hastily in an attempt to flee, the footsteps receding. There was a muffled grunt and a clang that barely registered in his dying mind as a candle holder was knocked over in his murderer's haste to escape. The flame from the candle caught on the heavy curtains, sending them up into flame and casting the chamber in a harsh orange glow. The flames spreading, catching from curtain to curtain and consuming the vast tapestries and rugs adorning the room, was the last image burned into his eyes as he slipped away into the darkness of death..._

* * *

><p>Cagalli awoke with a start. For a moment, she panicked as she took in the darkness of her surroundings, but immediately relaxed when she realized she was in her room. Sitting up, she glanced across to the other side of the room, at the bunk bed where her roommates, Lacus and Miriallia, were sound asleep. The sound of their steady breathing soothed her, and she settled back and glanced at the digital alarm clock on the nightstand beside her bed. In glowing green numbers, it displayed the time: 6 am... She still had two hours before her first class of the day.<p>

Cagalli shuddered as her dream replayed in the mind. She had been a man. For some reason, she knew this. It had been so lucid, and the vivid sensation of dying unnerved her. She could still feel the icy surface of the knife plunged deep into her heart and the cold chill that had come over her body as her blood slowly left her. Anger and denial boiled within her veins at the thought of her murderer's treachery.

_Her murderer..._ Cagalli could not remember who it was. All she knew was that it had been someone very close and dear to her, which explained the overwhelming emotions she had felt at that person's betrayal.

But she was being ridiculous. It was only a dream. She wasn't dead, whoever had murdered her didn't exist. It was simply a nightmare, most likely brought on by apprehension from the fact that school was starting again today. After a long and relaxing summer, she was not ready to return and complete her final year in college. She was quite ready to graduate and get a job. Though the thought of leaving the relative familiarity of school and venturing into the world of adults as a functioning member of society frightened her, she was eager to start working and earning money. Perhaps then her _real_ life would finally begin.

Though it was still quite early in the morning, Cagalli decided to get up and start the day. There was no use trying to go back to bed; the nightmare had unsettled her too much. Slipping out of her twin-sized bed as silently as possible so as not to wake her slumbering roommates, she padded over to her closet and quietly grabbed a pair of jeans and a T-shirt before making her way to the bathroom to freshen up. It was a new school year and a new beginning. Though Cagalli didn't enjoy school nearly as much as her twin brother Kira did, she still couldn't help but feel a small tingle of excitement. It was her last year after all, and she wanted to make the most of it.

As she got dressed, Cagalli contemplated her past three years attending Orb University, a fairly large and reputable public university. She had been absolutely ecstatic when she and her brother both received their acceptance letters. It had been her number one choice, and she had worried that she would not be able to get in because Orb University was one of the top universities in the nation, and her high school grades were not as good as her brother's. But she had succeeded, and entered as a business administration student while her brother majored in computer engineering.

She thought back to her freshman year, and smiled slightly to herself as she remembered how she had met Lacus and Miriallia on the first day of her orientation. They had immediately clicked, as though they had known each other their whole lives, and they had stayed together ever since. Not to mention, Lacus was currently dating Kira. Cagalli remembered how from the moment the two had laid eyes on each other, they had immediately been drawn together as though it was fate. Even now, after three years of dating, they were still as passionately in love as when they had first met.

Glancing at the time on her cellphone, Cagalli noted that it was only 6:30 am now. She had time to spend a little more time on her hair and make-up today. Cagalli peered at her face in the mirror and pursed her lips. Her reflection stared back at her, a little more sophisticated and feminine than how she had looked three years ago as a freshman, when she had been a disheveled tomboy who never spent more than five minutes getting ready in the morning. Cagalli studied her face a little more carefully. Her appearance had vastly improved from before, though she knew she could never be as beautiful as Lacus. At least she wasn't mistaken as a boy anymore, though she was still definitely a tomboy. Sometimes, Cagalli felt that she should have been born a man. Going through puberty had been an awkward experience, and she had been unused to the sudden widening of her hips and the appearance of curves which she had tried to hide with baggy men's clothing. Cagalli winced as she remembered how ungaily she looked and felt in high school. At least she was more comfortable in her own body now and had finally grown used to being a woman, but in the back of her mind, she always had the nagging feeling that she was really a man on the inside.

Cagalli finished up the final touches of her hair and makeup, and walked to the kitchen to make breakfast. She still had plenty of time before class, and she decided to mix some pancakes for Lacus and Miriallia to have for breakfast later. The apartment was soon permeated with the sweet smell of maple syrup and pancake batter, and Cagalli could hear the sounds of Lacus and Miriallia shifting in their beds from the bedroom. They would be awake soon, though they both did not have class until noon.

After wolfing down the last of her pancake, Cagalli grabbed her backpack and keys and headed out. Her first class of the day was a general education course. Though she was a senior, she still had to finish up her philosophy requirement before she could graduate. She was taking the course with Kira this semester, and Cagalli was looking forward to it. Rarely did she ever get to be in the same class with Kira, as he was in the engineering department and she in business administration. Though they were siblings and did get on one another's nerves every once in a while, Kira was still the sweetest, kindest person Cagalli had ever known. The had been inseparable as children.

Reaching the lecture hall where the class was being held, Cagalli decided to wait outside for Kira to show up, which he soon did with a friend in tow.

"Cagalli!" greeted Kira, "You're earlier than me for once."

Cagalli grinned back at her brother, a handsome brunette with a lean build, tanned skin, and gentle violet eyes.

"I just happened to get up earlier today."

"You were _that_ excited for school?" chuckled Kira, "You're still such a kid."

Cagalli lightly punched her brother in the arm as her eyes slid past him to the blue-haired stranger who had been standing there quietly observing.

The moment her eyes made contact with the stranger's green ones, Cagalli suddenly felt a jolt of recognition. He seemed to have felt it too, judging by the startled look in his eyes as he peered back at her. Cagalli felt a sudden influx of longing and intense sadness, and for a moment, it felt as though her heart had plummeted down to her stomach. Slightly stunned by the profound familiarity of the stranger and the odd emotions that had suddenly began swirling within her, Cagalli could not help but stare at Kira's blue-haired friend, who stared back just as intensely.

"Oh, right, I haven't introduced you two yet," said Kira, following Cagalli's gaze.

The two immediately broke their mutual scrutiny and turned to Kira.

"Er, Cagalli, this is my friend Athrun. He's also studying computer engineering" began Kira, "And this here is Cagalli, my sister."

Quickly trying to hide her shock, Cagalli stuck out her hand. "Nice to meet you."

Smiling softly, Athrun grasped her hand in a firm handshake. "It's funny how I've never met you until now. I've known Kira since freshman year, and he's always mentioned he had a sister, but he's never introduced me. But you do seem really familiar... "

Cagalli nodded in agreement. She studied Athrun's face. It was definitely an attractive face; his features were soft, almost effeminate, and he had beautiful green eyes fringed by long lashes. However, he was tall and lean, and the way he carried himself was self-assured and masculine. Cagalli was sure she had never seen him before because she would definitely have remembered someone so good-looking, though she still could not quell the nagging sense of familiarity. There was something about the gentleness in his manner that reminded her of someone from a long time ago...

"That's because I didn't want you to start putting the moves on my sister," said Kira, cutting off her thoughts. Turning to Cagalli, he warned playfully, "You better be careful of Athrun. He's a total player. He's already gone through two girls in this week alone."

"That's completely untrue!" protested Athrun, blushing. For some reason, he desperately did not want Cagalli to misunderstand. "You know I haven't dated anyone since Lacus!"

_Lacus?_ Cagalli's ears perked up at the name. _Interesting. So this is her ex. _

"Who said anything about dating? Must I remind you of the Hawke sisters?" teased Kira slyly, raising an eyebrow.

Athrun looked adorably flustered now. Exasperated, he turned to Cagalli. "Don't listen to what your brother is trying to imply. They only asked me out and I said no."

Cagalli laughed. "Don't worry, I understand. But still, two girls asked you out in one week? And they're the _Hawke sisters_ at that? I can't say I'm not impressed. You _player._"

Cagalli and Kira snickered as Athrun groaned in defeat.

"I'm not going to talk about this anymore. I'm not in the mood to be double-teamed by you twins. We need to get to class." Athrun turned and marched into the lecture hall with Cagalli and Kira following close behind.

However, as Cagalli settled into her seat beside Kira, she could not get over an unsettling feeling of unease. Something about Athrun made her recall her dream, though she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She knew that he must have felt it too by the way they had looked so oddly at each other, but it made no sense. Cagalli was sure she had never met Athrun before today.

Feeling a little lightheaded by the many thoughts swirling in her head and the distant memory of the dream, Cagalli found her eyelids growing heavy. The lecture hall was warm, dim, and stuffy, and the professor was monotonously droning on about the class sylllabus...

* * *

><p><em>Cagalli felt overcome by a sunny feeling of happiness and warmth. She was on a magnificent black stallion and riding astride through a grassy field. Pollen tickled her nose and the sun was warm on her hair and back. It was a lovely spring day; the harsh winter months had just passed. Ahead in the distance, looking quite spruce and cheerful in the bright yellow sunlight, was a large stone castle. Her home. Jaunty little pennants waved winsomely from the turrets. Beside her, on a mule with a dead boar strapped to its back, was a handsome young man whom Cagalli recognized as her manservant. She felt a rush of affection for him. They had grown up together and were as close as brothers, though he was of lower birth. He was always pleasant company and his disposition was kind and faithful.<em>

_Looking over her, the young man smiled and spoke, "Good work catching this boar, Milord. Your father will be pleased."_

_In the back of her mind, Cagalli registered that she was a man named Ailwin._

_Ailwin/Cagalli responded with an amused twist of his lips, "I told you already to call me Ailwin when it's just the two of us. Anyway, you're too kind Geoffrey. You take no credit for yourself. If it hadn't been for your keen eye, we would have lost track of the beast."_

_Geoffrey grinned back. "I'm flattered, Ailwin."_

_The rode on again in silence, before Geoffrey spoke again. "Ah, look, Lady Sabina and Lady Isabel have come out to greet you." He pointed into the distance, and Ailwin could make out the long dark tresses of the two ladies as they made their way down from the castle._

_As the two came closer, Ailwin could make out more clearly the two girls, who were both dark-haired beauties, though Lady Sabina's hair was closer to the color of burnt sienna, whereas Lady Isabel's hair was more like ebony._

_Ailwin and Geoffrey dismounted from their steeds to greet the ladies, who had broken into a run. Their long curls flowed out behind them, and they clutched at the bright wildflower garlands in their hair to prevent them from flying off. Red-faced and panting slightly, they stopped before Ailwin and greeted him enthusiastically._

_"How was the hunt, brother?" asked Lady Sabina._

_Ailwin smiled down at his sister. "We caught a boar."_

_Geoffrey nodded. "Aye. You should have seen Lord Ailwin. He shot the boar cleanly between the eyes with a single arrow. It's a monster of an animal too."_

_"That's amazing," murmured Lady Isabel. She was looking at Lord Ailwin adoringly, causing Geoffrey to smirk mischievously in his direction, his black-green eyes twinkling. Lord Ailwin rolled his eyes at his manservant. He remembered how Geoffrey had once mentioned that Lady Isabel was madly in love with him, though Ailwin had never thought of Lady Isabel romantically, and as far as he knew, Lady Isabel most likely didn't either. They had grown up together, as Lady Isabel's parents had died of a strange illness when she was but a child. Ailwin's parents, the Lord and Lady d'Eu, had kindly taken in Isabel as her mother and father had been close friends._

_"We made wildflower garlands for you and Geoffrey," said Sabina gaily. She draped a string of colorful blooms around Geoffrey's neck, and nudged Isabel._

_Blushing slightly, Isabel reached up to array hers around Ailwin's neck. Ailwin lowered his head slightly to allow her to do so._

_He gazed down at Isabel. "Thank you very much Isabel. They're lovely." Ailwin gently took her hand and kissed it in a knightly manner as he tried to ignore the stifled snorts from Geoffrey and Sabina._

_As Geoffrey led the horses away to the stables, Ailwin accompanied the two young woman back to the castle where his parents were waiting._

* * *

><p>"Wh-what?" Cagalli awoke with a start. Kira was prodding her quite roughly in the shoulder. She slapped his hand away. "Stop that!"<p>

Athrun was staring anxiously down at her. "Are you okay?" he asked.

Kira sniggered. "Don't worry about her. She _always_ falls asleep during lecture. Last time, she started snoring and the professor stared at her the whole time he was lecturing."

Athrun chuckled in amusement.

"Hey!" scowled Cagalli, slightly mortified. "I do not _snore_! Anyway, I'm just tired because I woke up a little earlier than usual this morning."

"Well, you missed the whole lecture," said Kira. "But don't worry, we didn't cover anything important other than the syllabus. Anyhow, let's get going! Lacus just texted me. She wants to meet up at the Treehouse and grab some smoothies."

Sighing, Cagalli stood up and stretched, feeling slightly conscious of Athrun's eyes on her. However, he quickly looked away when she glanced back at him.

They headed to the Treehouse, as the university student center was so affectionately called, where they met up with Lacus. Cagalli noted that Lacus and Athrun seemed to greet each other with their customary friendliness, despite being ex-lovers. Cagalli remembered Lacus mentioning once that she was still good friends with her ex-boyfriend, though it was interesting that the aforementioned ex-boyfriend was now best friends with the current boyfriend.

"Lacus is meeting up with someone out on that patio because she's selling him her textbook, so I'm going with her. We'll be right back," said Kira to Cagalli and Athrun.

"Er... okay," said Cagalli, somewhat unwillingly. She watched Kira and Lacus head out, and then turned to Athrun.

Now finally alone, the two stared awkwardly at each other.

"So... ah, Kira tells me you're in the business administration department," began Athrun. "What are your plans after graduation?"

"Probably try to get a job. I've been sending out applications," said Cagalli, eager to keep the small talk going to conceal their mutual discomfort. "You?"

"Probably grad school," shrugged Athrun.

There was another awkward pause as the two stared at each other.

Suddenly, Athrun chuckled.

"What's so funny?" asked Cagalli, curiously.

"I just remembered how you were drooling in class," laughed Athrun. "You were asleep pretty soundly."

"I was not drooling!" scowled Cagalli defensively. "Don't tell me _you've_ never fallen asleep in class!"

"I've never. And you have a bit of dried drool on the corner of your mouth," said Athrun mischievously.

"What? Why didn't anyone tell me?" Cagalli reached for a napkin and began scrubbing furiously at the corner of her mouth as Athrun laughed loudly.

"Don't worry, it's gone now," smiled Athrun. His gaze was teasing, and there was a twinkle of mischief in his bright emerald-green eyes. Cagalli was suddenly reminded of the young man from her dream. Her heart fluttered. _Geoffrey..._

Feeling confused and somewhat annoyed by the strange feelings that were welling up in her chest again, Cagalli tore her gaze away from the ridiculously captivating green globes located in his skull to focus on her drink. However, in her nervous haste, she accidentally knocked it over instead, and it spilled over the front of her shirt.

"Crap!" cursed Cagalli staring at her shirt, which used to be orange but now sported a large pink strawberry-flavored mess.

"Here," Athrun grabbed a wad of napkins and reached over to help mop up the mess, when he suddenly stopped and turned a brilliant shade of red. The spill was located on her chest, and his hand hovered for a few seconds over her breasts before he clumsily stuffed the napkins in her hand instead and turned away, utterly embarrassed.

Cagalli too, had turned a shade of pink rivalling the smoothie on her chest. She silently cursed Athrun for making the atmosphere turn awkward. For the few seconds that his hand had been hovering over her breasts, a strange tingle of electricity had passed between the both of them and the sexual tension had almost been palpable.

_Damn him for being so good-looking,_ thought Cagalli, gritting her teeth. _There's no use being attracted to him; he probably only dates Lacus-type girls._

"Thanks," mumbled Cagalli in response to the napkins. She managed to wipe off most of the smoothie, though a large, wet stain still remained on the front of her sighed. "I don't think this is going to come out."

Athrun shook his head sympathetically. "Maybe if you rinse it out with some water now you might be able to get most of it out."

"It's alright," sighed Cagalli. "I didn't like this shirt much anyway."

"Here," said Athrun. He unbuttoned his cardigan and handed it to her. "You can at least cover it up with this."

Gratefully, Cagalli took the garment and pulled it on. "Thanks, I owe you one."

"It's no problem at all," smiled Athrun cheerily.

Kira and Lacus returned just then.

"Hey so I have a class in a bit so I'm going to go fir-" He stopped mid-sentence as his eyes fell on Cagalli's attire.

"_Why,_" demanded Kira, his eyes narrowing dangerously at Athrun, "Is Cagalli wearing your cardigan?"

Nervously, Athrun avoided eye contact with Kira as he tried not to think about how he had almost touched Kira's sister's boobs.

Lacus giggled, amused by how over-protective Kira was being.

Hastily, Cagalli interrupted. "I spilled my smoothie on my shirt so Athrun is lending me this for now until I can get changed," she explained.

"Oh, okay," said Kira, mollified. "Well in that case I'm going to go now."

"Don't forget to come to the Lion's Club meeting tonight," called Cagalli to his retreating form.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure he comes," smiled Lacus.

"You're in Lion's Club?" asked Athrun, directing his question at Cagalli.

"I'm the president, actually," replied Cagalli, a little proudly. "I started it freshman year with Lacus and Miriallia. We're a community service organization, and we do stuff like volunteering at senior homes and elementary schools, holding fundraisers, and generally trying to be useful to the community. You should join!"

"I'll consider it," said Athrun, smiling. "Kira's been trying to get me involved for the longest time, but I've always been too busy."

"We're having our orientation for new members tonight. You should stop by, at least to pick up your cardigan!" said Cagalli enthusiastically.

"Okay. Just text me the time and place later," said Athrun. "Can I have your number?"

"Sure. Give me yours too," said Cagalli, pulling out her cell phone. She tried to ignore Lacus's giggling. She had a fair idea what was going through Lacus's head right now, and she wanted to crush the thought as soon as possible.

"Alright, I have to go now. I'll see you two later tonight," said Athrun. He flashed the two girls a quick smile as he left.

The moment was out of sight, Lacus turned to Cagalli.

"He's totally interested in you!" tittered Lacus excitedly. Cagalli rolled her eyes. It was just as she suspected.

"Isn't he your ex-boyfriend?" countered Cagalli.

Lacus airily waved the comment away. "We dated throughout high school, but we weren't serious. When we met, we immediately felt a connection, and we mistook it for love. But I didn't realize that our feelings were only that of deep friendship until I met Kira. We're just good friends now."

"Oh. I see.." said Cagalli.

Lacus gave a tinkly laugh. "In all the years I've known him, that's the first time I've actually ever seen him voluntarily ask for a girl's number. He's pretty popular, but he's a bigger dork than Kira so he doesn't really socialize with girls."

"In that case, it's probably just because he doesn't see me as a girl," said Cagalli. "He probably sees me as the female version of Kira or something."

"Don't be silly," responded Lacus, smiling demurely now. "He's definitely interested. You'll see."

* * *

><p>The rest of the day passed by in a flash. Before long, it was evening, and Cagalli soon found herself standing before a few dozen new Lion's Club recruits.<p>

As president, Cagalli gave a short introduction, and introduced Miriallia as vice president and Lacus as secretary. The Hawke sisters, a beautiful junior named Lunamaria and a lovely sophomore named Meyrin, were treasurer and events coordinator, respectively.

After showing a short slide on the club's past activities, Cagalli excused everyone to get a few refreshments and to mingle.

"We have a lot of new members this year," grinned Miriallia over her plastic cup of soda, quite pleased.

"Mostly because Lacus was the one handing out the flyers this year," smirked Cagalli, nudging her pink-haired friend.

"Oh, don't be silly," replied Lacus, blushing slightly. Though it was true, of course. Lacus was the loveliest and nicest and had the unique ability to make boys go weak in the knees with a single smile. What someone like Lacus saw in a humongous nerd like Kira, Cagalli would never know.

"Well, thanks to you we managed to get a good number of boys this year," giggled Lunamaria, glancing over the crowd. Her eyes lingered on a surly-looking black-haired freshman who was slouching near the back, scowling. "I'm going to go talk to them."

Cagalli shook her head. Flirtatious and beautiful, Lunamaria was always harboring micro crushes on boys, but she always lost interest the moment said boys began to show interest in return.

"There goes Lunamaria, doing her thing," sighed Miriallia, shaking her head. "She's incorrigible. I thought she would have learned her lesson by now after the last time she had to get a restraining order when that guy she was hitting on turned out to be a creeper."

"Honestly. How do you manage to live with her?" said Cagalli teasingly to Meyrin, who had been quiet this whole time. Meyrin simply smiled weakly and shrugged. She was shy and never talked much.

"Oh look, she's back, with two boys in tow," said Miriallia. Lunamaria was heading back toward them, followed by the scowling black-haired boy she had been eyeing earlier, and another darker-skinned freshman who sported an unruly mop of brown hair.

Smiling, Lunamaria reached them. Gesturing smilingly at the two boys, she said, "I want you guys to meet Shinn and Ahmed. They're freshmen and-"

Cagalli did not hear the rest of her sentence. The moment she laid eyes on Shinn and Ahmed, she was once again struck by an intense feeling of deja vu, not unlike what she had experienced when she met Athrun. Her eyes slid to Shinn's face, and with a shudder of half fear and half recognition, she took in his red eyes that seemed to burn with an intense hatred for her. The pure abhorrence emanating from his body was directed at her specifically, but for some reason, his animosity was also familiar. The emotions that were welling up with Cagalli's chest at the sight of the two boys proved too much for her to bear, and she collapsed to the ground in a dead faint. Shinn's glaring red eyes were impressed in her mind as she sank into darkness.

* * *

><p><em>It was suppertime.<em>

_ Ailwin was enjoying his meal with the rest of the family, though his appetite was somewhat diminished due to the presence of Terric, his cousin and longtime rival. Ailwin cast a sidelong glance at Terric, who was seated diagonally across from him. His face was twisted up in its customary glower, and he was staring murderously down at the roasted bird before him. Ailwin usually tried to stay out of Terric's way, but Terric seemed to consider it his duty to taunt Ailwin at every opportunity. Ailwin's patience with Terric was quickly running thin, though he understood why Terric hated him so. Back in the day, the castle had belonged to Terric's father. However, Terric's father had died of the same plague that had taken Isabel's parents, and so the inheritance had passed down to his younger brother, Ailwin's father. Naturally, Terric felt robbed of his inheritance, and viewed Ailwin as the unlawful usurper of what should have been his. Ailwin understood Terric's feelings, but it was hard to sympathize with him. He made no effort to be sociable._

_Suddenly slamming his knife down on the table and standing up, Terric stormed out of the room. Ailwin knew that it was because Terric was still upset that he had beaten him at archery that afternoon. Terric was never one to lose gracefully. However, no one else seemed to notice Terric's impetuous departure; nearly everyone had already become accustomed to Terric's frequent outbursts._

_Ailwin's grip tightened around his fork. Just because Terric had lost didn't mean that he had to take his anger out on everyone! It was time the ungrateful brat learned a lesson._

_However, Geoffrey, who had been standing at the ready behind Ailwin's, noticed his anger._

_"Ignore him," whispered Geoffrey. "There's no use in going after him. You'll just make things worse."_

_"I suppose you're right," muttered Ailwin moodily, as he stabbed a chunk of meat on his plate, "But that doesn't mean he should get away with being such an arrogant prick."_

_"So what do you think of that, Ailwin?" said Lord d'Eu, suddenly raising his voice to address his son. The entire table turned their attention toward him._

_"Of what, father?" asked Ailwin respectfully, looking up._

_"Your birthday is in a fortnight! What say you of having the traveling troupe that's passing through to perform at the celebration."_

_Isabel and Sabina, who were sitting across from him, turned hopeful eyes on him._

_"That sounds like a fine idea," said Ailwin, smilng at the two girls. They smiled gratefully back._

_"Oh, it'll be lovely!" gushed Lady d'Eu. "And we'll invite the Altards and the d'Escalles! Their daughters are lovely and I'm sure we'll be able to find a suitable match for you. It's about time you were wed."_

_Ailwin sighed. His mother had become increasingly aggressive lately in persuading him to take on a wife, though he did not feel ready to be married yet. No lady had caught his eye, and the only woman whom he was closest to that wasn't a relation was Isabel._

_Ailwin stole a glance of Isabel, who seemed a little downcast at all this marriage talk. Her parents had died and her inheritance had gone off to a distant male relation, who had selfishly kept the money for himself. As a result, she had no property and therefore no dowry. The only valuable possession she could call her own was her name. She was a highborn lady, but no practical highborn man would marry a woman with no family or wealth. Her best bet would be a convent. However, she had had a recent marriage offer from a very old, but very wealthy baron, and the Lord and Lady d'Eu were pressuring her to accept the offer. Nevertheless, Isabel had refused, which had greatly displeased the Lord and Lady d'Eu, though Ailwin was secretly glad Isabel had turned him down. He cared greatly for Isabel as a sister, and the old baron had been quite lecherous and repulsive. Isabel would never have been happy with him._

_Isabel was now staring unhappily into her lap, and Ailwin could not help but pity her. Her beauty would go to waste in a convent, but the Lord and Lady d'Eu seemed to be formulating plans to send her away to one. Sabina and Ailwin would soon be marrying others, and Isabel would very quickly have no place in the castle._

* * *

><p>Cagalli awoke with a start. She could still remember the dream very clearly. She wondered why she kept dreaming of this "Lord Ailwin." Ailwin, Geoffrey, Isabel, Sabina... Terric... All these names seemed very familiar to her, yet Cagalli was sure she had never met these people in her life. It was odd that she was having such vivid recurring dreams.<p>

"You finally awake?" came a soft voice from above her. Cagalli started and realized that she was lying on someone's lap. Blinking her eyes to focus, the face of a certain blue-haired young man swam into view.

"Athrun!" gasped Cagalli in shock and slight horror as she scrambled to sit up. Looking around her, Cagalli realized that they were sitting on a bench right outside the classroom in which the Lion's Club meeting was being held. "The meeting!"

"It's over already," soothed Athrun. "Me and Kira came in just as you fainted. Miriallia and the others finished up the meeting for you and went to return the projector and the other stuff you borrowed. Kira and Lacus decided to go get his car so they can give you a ride home, and they asked me to stay with you."

"I see," muttered Cagalli. This was probably all Lacus's idea to leave her alone with Athrun, no doubt about it. Still feeling disoriented, she shook her head to clear her thoughts.

"Are you okay?" asked Athrun. He looked down at her with concern, and reached up to brush a strand of blonde hair away from Cagalli's face.

Suddenly feeling embarrassed, Cagalli moved away and Athrun quickly withdrew his hand.

"I'm fine," mumbled Cagalli. "I don't know why I suddenly fainted. I've been feeling perfectly fine."

"You were probably just tired," said Athrun.

"Yeah," agreed Cagalli, though she wasn't really. She thought back to the last thing she had seen before fainting, and remembered Shinn.

Shin...

Something about him seemed so familiar. _Terric..._ the thought came involuntarily to her head. The feeling of deja vu had been occuring a lot recently, and Cagalli wondered if it had anything to do with her recurring dreams and her fainting spell.

"Kira's here," said Athrun, interrupting her thoughts. "Let's get you home."

* * *

><p>Athrun watched Kira drive off with Cagalli in the passenger seat and turned around to head back to the apartment which he shared with his friends Dearka, Yzak, and Nicol. He hoped Cagalli would be okay. She had seemed a little dazed and out-of-sorts when he had helped her into the car.<p>

Athrun felt his face slightly heat up as he thought of Kira's sister. She had been quite a... surprise. Kira had frequently mentioned having a sister, and Athrun had imagined a socially inept and dorky female version of Kira. However, Cagalli was blonde with a slender and fit physique and fiery amber eyes. Though she wasn't beautiful in the conventional way, she was still pretty and her face possessed a certain charisma that drew Athrun in. Her large eyes were clear and steady, and she had a firm though stubborn set to her full lips that made Athrun stare at her mouth every time she spoke. The way she pouted was ridiculously cute, and Athrun couldn't help but want to tease her. All her different expressions fascinated Athrun, and he felt that he wanted to see more of her.

And her body... she was lean and toned with just the right amount of softness. Athrun hadn't been able to keep himself from staring as she had stretched after her class-time nap, exposing a bit of her tight flat belly. And then she had walked away from him and Athrun found his eyes following the sensual sway of her hips as she moved.  
>It was simply insane how attractive he found Kira's sister. Athrun couldn't remember the last time he had felt this way about a girl. Sure, after Lacus, there were other girls, but they had all been brief flings. Kira hadn't been entirely wrong in labeling him a "player" though it wasn't like Athrun actively went around womanizing. Women just seemed to be drawn to him naturally. Though his short liaisons had only occurred for a brief period after he had broken-up with Lacus in freshman year. After the last woman turned out to be completely insane, he had pretty much sworn off all women and concentrated on his studies instead.<p>

Athrun sighed. Problem was, Cagalli was Kira's _sister._ Kira was extremely over-protective of her, which explained why he had not introduced her to him until now, after nearly four years of being best friends. Athrun had a feeling that Kira would not be pleased if he started putting the moves on her, especially given his freshman year track record with women. But those days were long over.

Nevertheless, even if he wanted to, Athrun had no clue how to hit on a girl anyway. Most of the women he had been with had always taken the initiative, Lacus included. Wooing Cagalli would be a new challenge, not simply because she was Kira's sister, but also because she was feisty, proud, and stubborn. Athrun shook his head. It was probably better to get to know her a little better first before he asked her out. He had only met her for a single day, and he was already fantasizing about her. This situation was definitely a first.

That night Athrun had a dream...

* * *

><p><em>He was standing in a stone passage, staring out a window at the field below. Several dozen yards below him was a young man with straw-colored hair lunging and thrusting with his sword as he practiced his swordsmanship. <em>Lord Ailwin_... sighed Athrun mentally. He felt an intense longing for the young man below. He admired the determination and courage that always flashed from Ailwin's eyes, as well as his compassion and noble mien. But they could never be together._

_Just then, Athrun's thoughts were interrupted by a maidservant._

_"Lady Isabel?" called the maidservant._

_"Yes?" said Athrun, turning around._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **There you have it! Chapter 1. Please read and review! I appreciate any form of constructive feedback.

**EDIT: **PLEASE NOTE! I just realized that I accidentally wrote that Isabel is Ailwin's sister. This is a typo! Ailwin and Sabina are siblings. Isabel is simply a childhood friend that grew up with them. Ailwin and Sabina's parents intend to marry them off to other people. Sorry! This very nearly turned into an incest fic...


	2. Chapter 2: Confirmation of the Dream

**Recap:** Cagalli has been having dreams of being a young lord named Ailwin in medieval Europe, and being murdered by someone close to her. She meets Athrun and Shinn, who remind her of Ailwin's manservant Geoffrey and his cousin Terric. Athrun has also been having similar dreams, but in _his_ dreams, he is a young woman named Isabel, who is a close friend of Lord Ailwin.

* * *

><p>Ch. 2: Confirmation of the Dream<p>

_Ailwin gazed anxiously out the window. It was a warm, humid night. There was a strange oppressiveness in the air, and the thickness of the atmosphere made it almost palpable to the touch. It was as though a heavy blanket had been cast over the castle, muffling the usual sights and sounds of the night._

_He squinted into the darkness, trying to make out the banquet hall where the others were now most likely slumping back into their seats with heavy eyelids, drunk and full from celebrating the midsummer's festivities. He could make out a dim shaft of orange candlelight escaping from a half-open door, but that was all. The rest of the castle was strangely dark and silent. Ailwin wondered what the guards were doing. It was odd. They were not at their usual posts. Ailwin felt overcome by a wave of foreboding, though he struggled to assuage his fears. The guards were probably off having a celebration of their own. They would have to be reprimanded tomorro-_

_Ailwin cut the thought short. There would be no tomorrow. He was not coming back. He felt a sudden stab of apprehension and hesitation, but struggled to contain the negative emotions that were rising within his breast. There was no use turning back. His mind was made up, and he was set to move forward. _

_Ailwin ran through the plan again in his mind for the tenth time. Nothing would go wrong tonight. He had planned every move down to the minutest detail-he would not be discovered, no one would get in his way. So far, everything had gone smoothly. For now, all he had to do was wait._

_There was a knock on the door. _

_Ailwin turned, and smiled upon seeing the person who just entered. Walking forward with a hand outstretched, he-_

_The person abruptly rushed forward with a knife in hand, and plunged it into Ailwin's chest. In shock, Ailwin stared straight into his killer's eyes as he slowly sank to the floor, his body numbed to the pain as his mind tried to process the betrayal. _

_"You... why..." he croaked. _

_He forced himself to gaze straight into his murderer's face as he lay dying. _

_Let the image of your treachery haunt you for all eternity, thought Ailwin vindictively as he felt his life slip away._

* * *

><p>Cagalli awoke with a start for the third or fourth night in the row. For the past several days, she had been having the same dream-the dream of being a man named Ailwin, of being killed by a person she had trusted.<p>

The dreams were getting longer and clearer with each successive night, though Cagalli was still unable to recall the face of her murderer. That part of her dreams always became a blur the moment she woke up. It was frustrating because she could remember everything else so lucidly. Even now, she could still recall the velvety feel of the night air on her skin and the musty scent of the chamber.

She shuddered. She could also recall with equally vivid detail the cold iciness of the blade as it had plunged into her body, the chill of death that had overtaken her as her life slipped away, and the bitterness of the betrayal. Remnants of the anger and disbelief she had felt still burned within her breast.

It was simply ridiculous that her dreams were affecting her to such an extent. She found herself dreading to go to bed at night, dreading the moment when the nightmare would overtake her again and she would re-live dying again and again and again...

She had not slept well for days, and it showed. She had begun to develop dark circles beneath her eyes, and she longed simply to sink into a long and dreamless sleep. Her dreams of Ailwin were eating away at her like an elusive itch that started out small but began to occupy her mind and demand all her attention as she struggled fruitlessly to relieve it.

Cagalli stumbled out of bed and clumsily made her way to the bathroom. It was a Saturday, and she had volunteer activities at a retirement home for the Lion's club that morning. She quickly washed her face and brushed her teeth, and then returned to her room to prod Lacus and Miriallia awake. Disoriented and mumbling incoherently, they blinked the sleep from their eyes as they clumsily made their way to the bathroom.

An hour later, after much fumbling and groaning, mainly on Miriallia's part, all three of them were dressed and ready to go. They stood outside the apartment complex as they watched Kira pull up to a stop beside them in his blue compact car. Cagalli was surprised to see Athrun sitting in the passenger's seat.

"Good morning!" called Kira cheerily. The girls returned his greeting with equal enthusiasm as they piled into the backseat.

Cagalli directed her attention toward the blue-haired young man in the front seat. "Athrun! I didn't know you were coming. You said you weren't sure when I asked you yesterday!" exclaimed Cagalli.

"I finished my work early last night, so I had time today," smiled Athrun. "Besides, Kira kept nagging."

"I don't want to be the only guy again. There's always a ton of girls at these events," explained Kira, shrugging.

"Luckily, a lot of boys joined this year, thanks to Lacus," snickered Cagalli, "Though I'm worried they'll quit once they find out she's taken."

"That's not true, Cagalli," said Lacus. "A lot of boys joined because of you." She threw a meaningful glance at Athrun, and Cagalli rolled her eyes in response. She hoped the boys hadn't noticed. Lacus seemed unable to relinquish her belief that Athrun was interested in her, and Cagalli didn't want her friend to start getting any match-making ideas. Forcing them together would probably just end up scaring Athrun away anyway. And besides, Cagalli mused to herself, Athrun was nice to everyone. It didn't mean he had any special feelings for her, even if he _had_ taken care of her during that fainting episode over a week ago. He probably would have done the same for anyone other person. He was out of her league anyway. He was good-looking and smart, with a pleasant personality to boot. He was a little _too_ perfect, and in a way, it irked Cagalli a little.

"Yeah, but they're all going to quit once they find out how scary Cagalli really is," muttered Kira in response to Lacus.

Leaning forward, Cagalli laughingly punched her brother lightly on the arm.

"Kira's right though," said Lacus, referring to Kira's earlier complaint about the large ratio of girls to boys in the club, "Mostly girls are coming today. Ahmed, Meyrin, and Lunamaria signed up to volunteer today. Counting us, that makes five girls and three boys. "

"Hear that Athrun? The Hawke sisters are coming," said Kira, nudging his friend, who shot him a look. Cagalli interestedly observed Athrun's response, and noted that he seemed more mildly annoyed rather than pleased. To a guy like Athrun, having girls fawning over him probably got old after a while. Attractive people had a whole other set of problems, thought Cagalli amusedly to herself.

The rest of the ride was a pleasant one and they chatted comfortably. Before long, they reached their destination, where they met up with Ahmed, Lunamaria, and Meyrin.

The group entered the retirement home, which housed the characteristic odor of old people, and walked up to the front desk where the volunteer coordinator was expecting them. She glanced over the group.

"We just need some help in the bingo hall and with putting up the autumn decorations today. The boys can help out with bingo and the girls can do the decorations. Afterward, you can just play cards with some of the seniors out in the lounge."

The group nodded in assent.

The volunteer coordinator continued, "The bingo hall is down thataway. I'm sure you guys know since you've been here before." She motioned to the girls. "You girls follow me. I'll show you what needs to be put up in the lounge."

The coordinator led them to the storage room where they grabbed armfuls of colorful wreaths and garlands and pumpkin trinkets as well as a few rolls of duct tape. Then, they headed back to the lounge where a few elderly residents were already reclining in the many armchairs, watching television, playing chess, and snoozing.

Smiling in greeting, the girls entered and busied themselves with their task. They arranged the little trinkets attractively on top of the mantel, and looped the red and yellow garlands across doorways. Miriallia returned with orange streamers, which they fastened to the ceiling in drooping chains. Lacus came up with the idea of using the crepe streamers to make little rose centerpieces, and they put small bouquets of them on the lounge tables. The girls stepped back to survey their work with satisfaction. The room was beginning to appear a lot more festive and welcoming.

Cagalli was busy pasting multi-colored silhouettes of leaves on a window when a decrepit old woman who had been innocuously dozing on the couch beside her suddenly shot out her hand and gripped Cagalli by the wrist in a wrinkled little claw.

With a start, Cagalli turned to the old woman, rather surprised.

"Is there something you need?" asked Cagalli cautiously, while wondering if the old woman was still half asleep or dreaming.

With surprising strength, the old woman yanked Cagalli down to her eye level. Cagalli winced as she was brought face to face with the old woman's beady and yellowed little eyes, which peered at her brightly from below sagging, wrinkled brows.

The old woman's next words sent chills down Cagalli's spine.

"Beware," hissed the old woman. "Beware of your curse, young lord. Your past life has found you."

Cagalli had no time to process the old woman's pronouncement when she suddenly released Cagalli.

The next moment, the old woman was already lying back on the couch in her previous position, snoring away.

Utterly bewildered, Cagalli straightened up as she massaged her wrist and glanced around the room. No one else seemed to have noticed what had just transpired. It had happened so abruptly, that Cagalli wondered herself whether she had imagined it. The old woman was snoring loudly with her mouth open, and her peacefully slumbering old face gave no indication that she had just suddenly sat up and given a dramatic warning.

Slowly, Cagalli turned back to the window and picked up another yellow leaf.

The old woman had mentioned a past life and called her a young lord. Cagalli pondered this for a moment, and thought back to her recurring dreams of being Lord Ailwin. Perhaps she had been Lord Ailwin in her past life. But that was simply too much of a stretch. The old woman was probably suffering from dementia of some sort. Besides, the old woman had mentioned a curse. The thought of being cursed sent another chill down Cagalli's spine, but she tried to rationalize her fear. There were no such things as curses or past lives. Anyway, it was probably better to ignore it. She would probably end up feeling silly for over thinking it later, and so far, nothing had really happened.

Yet.

* * *

><p>After the girls finished decorating, they regrouped with the boys and spent the rest of the morning playing boardgames and cards with the seniors. Cagalli avoided the old woman who had given her the warning, though it wasn't hard as she was asleep on the couch for the extent of their visit. Afterward, Kira suggested stopping at a nearby Thai restaurant to grab lunch. Everyone readily agreed.<p>

As Cagalli slid into her seat on the edge, she was a little disappointed to see Ahmed slide into the seat across from her as Miriallia took the seat beside her. She had not had the chance to talk to Athrun alone that whole day. Not that it mattered anyway.

She threw a sidelong glance at Athrun seated at the other end of the table and watched his interactions with Meyrin with amusement. Meyrin obviously had not gotten over her crush on Athrun, as her clumsiness seemed to increase ten-fold in Athrun's presence. And Athrun, being the gentleman he was, courteously came to her aid every time, which only exacerbated the problem.

For the two minutes that they had been seated, Meyrin had already knocked the silverware to the ground, which Athrun bent down to retrieve, only to have Meyrin knock her glass of water onto him as well while he was bending down.

Cagalli felt sorry for Meyrin, whose face had turned the same shade as her red hair, and who was on the verge of bursting into tears as she apologized profusely.

Sopping wet, Athrun reassured her that it was no problem at all, and gave her a kind smile as he stood up to go to the bathroom to dry off.

"Poor Meyrin," sighed Miriallia, who had also been watching the scene unfold, "She could be really popular with the boys if she'd stop being so shy."

Cagalli nodded in agreement, and surveyed Meyrin surreptitiously. Meyrin was definitely attractive, as she possessed striking red hair and exotic violet eyes. She had an innocence to her that was rather appealing.

Miriallia nudged Cagalli. "How much do you want to bet that they start dating before the semester's up?"

Cagalli shrugged a little uncomfortably.

Miriallia continued, "They would be a really cute couple, though Athrun seems kind of like a player."

Cagalli only grunted in response. Changing the subject, she directed her attention toward Ahmed.

"So Ahmed, you're a freshman?" smiled Cagalli amiably.

Ahmed looked up, surprised at being addressed so abruptly, and blushed a little before responding gruffly, "Yeah. I'm in the business administration department."

"Same here, I guess I'm your senior," grinned Cagalli cheerily. "Let me know if you need any help with classes or anything. I'll be happy to give you advice."

"Th-thanks," stuttered Ahmed, turning a little redder. He glanced at Cagalli out of the corner of his eyes, and immediately glanced away when he saw that her eyes were already trained on his.

Cagalli watched Ahmed's expression, slightly amused. He was rather boyish, being fresh out of high school, though Cagalli could tell that he made an effort to appear more mature. However, he had not yet perfected the art of concealing his emotions, and Cagalli rather enjoyed how she could accurately read the expressions on his face.

Miriallia tried to contain her snickers. Ahmed's crimson face was beginning to rival Meyrin's, and he was obviously very flustered underneath Cagalli's gaze.

_It looks like someone has a crush _sang Miriallia in her head.

Pitying the boy, Miriallia leaned forward and asked a casual question, "How are you enjoying college so far?"

Relieved to have another individual to direct his attention toward, Ahmed turned to Miriallia and responded that he was enjoying his classes so far. Before long, the three were animatedly chatting away, and Ahmed appeared to be a little more at ease in Cagalli's presence.

Cagalli found him to be rather endearing, in a little-brotherly sort of way. The way he blushed and stuttered in her presence was rather flattering, and she found she couldn't resist teasing him by being a little flirtier than usual. She knew Miriallia would probably pester her mercilessly about it the moment they got home by the way she kept nudging her under the table, but at the moment, Cagalli was enjoying herself.

Before long, they had finished their meals and were heading out the door. Cagalli was surprised to find Athrun at her elbow as they exited. The two of them lingered behind the rest of the group as they slowly walked toward the parking lot with slow, leisurely steps.

"Haven't had the chance to talk to you all day," said Athrun casually.

"Yeah, we were both pretty busy," nodded Cagalli in agreement.

"How was decorating the lounge?"

Cagalli thought back to the old woman and the curse, but forced a smile on her face. "Fine. How was bingo with the seniors?"

"They kept falling asleep on us."

Cagalli laughed.

"I saw your little fiasco with the water," said Cagalli teasingly, after a moment. She looked up at Athrun, her eyes gleaming with mischief.

Athrun smiled a little sheepishly down at her. "I seem to attract accident-prone women."

"Oh right," said Cagalli, remembering the fainting incident. "I never did get to thank you properly for taking care of me afterward. I heard from Lacus that you carried me out. I must have been heavy."

"Not really," said Athrun gallantly. "You don't weigh much at all."

There was another moment of silence as Cagalli thought about how to respond. The way he was gazing at her with his bright green eyes was making Cagalli's stomach flutter a little nervously, and she felt a little light-headed.

"About that thank-you," said Athrun quietly, leaning in a little closer, "I was wondering if-"

He was abruptly interrupted by a loud squeal as a mass of something pink with flowing black hair suddenly rammed itself straight into his middle.

Surprised, Cagalli stared at the mass and realized that it was really a buxom young woman in a tight, low-cut, hot pink mini-dress. She was clinging to Athrun like a leech. Her arms were tightly encircled around his middle, and her large breasts were pressed quite firmly against him.

Athrun seemed at a loss of words as he gaped down at her, before he snapped out of his shock and pushed her away.

"Meer!" gasped Athrun in horror.

"Athrun!" squealed the woman, undeterred, in a piercing shriek, "I'm so happy to see you! Why don't you ever call me?" She launched herself at Athrun again.

"Meer," said Athrun firmly, holding her away at arm's length, "I've already told you once. I'm not interested! Stop calling me and following me around!"

"But we even slept together!" protested Meer. She tried to wrap herself around him again, but Athrun was having none of it.

Cagalli cocked her eyebrow at Athrun.

"Ca-cagalli!" stammered Athrun frantically, blushing. The rest of the group had stopped as well and turned toward them to see what the commotion was. "This isn't what it looks like! I was only with her once during freshman year!"

"She seems to think otherwise," said Cagalli rather coolly.

"I was your girlfriend, silly!" said Meer pouting. "We were so close! You even touched me in all my-" Athrun desperately clapped a hand over her mouth.

"Meer," said Athrun sternly. "You need to leave. Now."

By now, the rest of the group had gathered around them.

"Is that Meer?" said Kira frowning.

A young man with floppy blonde hair who had previously been standing by unnoticed stepped forward. "We should go, Meer. We're going to be late for our meeting."

Pouting, Meer turned to him. "It can wait a little longer."

"No, it can't," he said soberly. He reached forward to take her hand. "Let's go."

"Fine," glowered Meer. "But let me just say goodbye."

However, as she turned to Athrun, she caught sight of Cagalli who was standing beside him. Her eyes widened.

For a long moment, the two young women stared at each other.

Meer made the first move.

"My lord! I've finally found you!" screamed Meer ecstatically as she heaved herself at Cagalli.

_My lord...?_ was Cagalli's last thought before her head hit the pavement with a crack.

* * *

><p><em>Ailwin sighed with annoyance as he strolled through the gardens of the d'Eu estate. It was a beautiful spring day, the birds were chirping, the flowers were in bloom, there was really nothing to complain about. However, what was irking Ailwin at the moment was the prattling young lady on the verge of yanking off his arm in a death grip as she roughly dragged him through the enclosure. <em>

_"Lady d'Escalles," said Ailwin, trying to sound civil through gritted teeth, "Would you please release my arm? I am going hunting later today, and I would prefer to have my arm in good working condition." _

_"Don't be silly," she simpered. "A little show of affection won't harm you. Besides, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Millicent? If we're going to be wed in the future, I would like us to be on familiar terms." _

_Gnashing his teeth in irritation, Ailwin growled, "Lady d'Escalles, how many times must I remind you? The only person who has been bringing up matrimony is you. I believe that I have equal say in this matter, and I do not wish to marry you." _

_Millicent d'Escalles turned to him, her bottom lip trembling and her wide blue eyes filling up with tears. "Whatever do you mean?" she quivered. "This is the first I've heard of this." _

_Ailwin reminded himself for the hundreth time that day that Millicent d'Escalles, no matter how abrasive she was on his nerves, was still a lady and it would do no good to lose his temper before her. _

_Closing his eyes and breathing deeply through his nose, Ailwin looked at Millicent, and said in the most cordial tone he could muster, "Lady d'Escalles, I believe I have been quite upfront with you in that I have absolutely no intention of marrying you. However, you have been willfully disregarding my lack of interest in matrimony. I hope this will be the last time that I must repeat myself. I. Do. Not. Wish. To. Marry. You." _

_Ailwin was unsurprised when Millicent burst into tears. In fact, he was expecting it. However, he was slightly disconcerted when she began to bawl loudly and throw a tantrum. _

_Stumbling back, Millicent screamed and grabbed a handful of innocent blossoms. Furiously, she tore them into shreds between her fingers, and threw the mangled remains at Ailwin's face. The petals fluttered harmlessly to the ground before they reached him, and the sight of this seemed to infuriate her further. _

_"You don't understand!" bellowed Millicent at the top of her lungs, "We have to be married! We have to!" _

_"My lady, please calm down," said Ailwin, unnerved and perplexed by her outburst. He tried to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder, but Millicent backed away from his reach. _

_"No!" she shrieked, "You don't understand anything! No one, no one, no one! No one understands!" _

_"I don't understand what?" asked Ailwin, trying to sound patient when all he really wanted to do was walk away and leave her to her own hysterics. _

_Millicent crumpled to the ground and began to sob heartbrokenly. _

_"No one loves me," wept Millicent, "Everybody loves Helen. Father and mother favor her the most, and she's already received five marriage proposals, but she turned them down because she didn't love any one of them. It's not fair that she gets to choose someone she loves to marry. It's not fair!" _

_Ailwin tried to make comforting shushing sounds as he kneeled down to Millicent's level. He pitied her because what she said was true. Millicent's older sister, Helen, was beautiful, kind, and graceful, the epitome of everything a woman should be. Millicent, though quite lovely herself, was overshadowed by her sister's feminine accomplishments at every turn. _

_Still choking on her sobs, Millicent continued, "And my father says that if I am unable to find a suitable groom by the end of the year, he's going to marry me to the Baron Bouchard. He's disgusting and old and lecherous! I'd rather die than marry him!" _

_"Millicent," said Ailwin soothingly, "I'm not the only eligible young man around. And you're a lovely young woman. I'm quite certain that you'll be able to find someone you love and who loves you in return in no time at all. You needn't worry. If you wish it, I can speak to your father to delay your marriage to the Baron Bouchard." _

_Millicent shook him away. "You still don't understand! Marrying you is the only way out! I'll never give up. Never!" _

_Standing up, Millicent turned and fled from the gardens. Ailwin watched her go, exasperation clearly written on his features._

* * *

><p>"Cagalli! Cagalli!" anxious voices buzzed around Cagalli's head. In the distance, she could hear overly-exaggerated weeping. Cagalli felt someone slapping her face.<p>

"Stop," mumbled Cagalli, but the slapping continued. Forcing her eyes open, she said louder, "Stop!"

"Sorry," said Miriallia sheepishly, "I was trying to wake you up."

Cagalli glared balefully at her friend as she tried to sit up. Her head spun, and she realized that she was still lying on the ground in the parking lot. She turned toward the sound of the weeping, and realized that it was coming from a certain pink-clad woman.

"Oh gods," groaned Cagalli, "You're still here?"

Cagalli's eyes widened as she saw the woman preparing to catapult herself onto her for the second time. Luckily, the woman's blonde companion held her back, and Cagalli sighed in relief.

"Can you stand up?" asked Kira anxiously. He leaned down to help his sister to her feet.

"I'm so sorry," Meer was sobbing over and over.

"It's fine," sighed Cagalli. "I just want to go home now. I'm tired."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Athrun looked worriedly down at her and held onto her elbow to steady her. Cagalli allowed Athrun and Kira to usher her away, as the rest of the group trailed silently behind. Cagalli could hear a final wail from Meer as she was led away by her companion that sounded a lot like _My Lord!_

"I said I'm _fine_," said Cagalli, a little belligerently. She did not enjoy being fussed over. She was relieved to be getting far away from the insufferable Millic- Cagalli stopped. Wasn't the girl's name Meer? With another shock, Cagalli remembered what Meer had called her before she had blacked out. _My Lord... _

Stunned, Cagali felt her head reel as everything that happened that day rushed to her head. The old woman, the curse, the past life, Millicent/Meer...

Cagalli gulped. She felt like fainting again as the pieces fell into place...

* * *

><p>Unfortunately for Cagalli, the incident on Saturday was not the last she heard of Meer. As it turned out, Meer was also a student at the university. She was a fourth year theater major, and she had somehow discovered that Cagalli was in the business administration department, and stalked her at every opportunity.<p>

To make matters worse, Meer insisted on being extremely... affectionate... when she was with Cagalli. Cagalli remembered her shock when on Monday, Meer had bounded up to her and thrown herself into her arms, and then given her a deep and lingering kiss on the lips. In front of everyone!

Since then, Meer acted as though they were joined at the hip. She seemed to have gotten ahold at Cagalli's schedule, and every time class ended, Cagalli would look toward the door with great trepidation, and without fail, Meer would be waiting there, blowing kisses and and squeezing her ample bosoms together to accentuate her cleavage. She seemed to have forgotten about Athrun completely, and treated him as though she had never met him in her life. Instead, she focused all her attention on Cagalli, coddling her and caressing her and groping her at every turn.

However, what unnerved Cagalli the most, was that Meer called her _Lord Ailwin_. Of all the people in the world to share the secret of her past life, it had to be _Meer_. Meer! This simpering, inane, buxom _bimbo!_

Cagalli wanted to scream in frustration. She had suffered through two whole days of this treatment. It didn't help that Kira found the whole situation amusing, and never took her complaints seriously. Athrun seemed to want to help, but Cagalli was subtlely avoiding him. It was _his_ crazy ex-paramour that was following her around and annoying her to no end. Milli was right in labeling him a player. And though Cagalli did not want to admit it, she had been rather irked when Meer showed up as evidence of Athrun's womanizing past. Though Athrun was insistent that he wasn't a womanizer. Cagalli didn't know who to believe. According to Lacus, he was a dork who had no experience with women whatsoever. And according to Kira, Athrun was notorious for being a man-whore.

_Not that it matters anyway_ Cagalli reminded herself for the upteenth time. She was attracted to Athrun, but Cagalli convinced herself that it was only because she strongly suspected him of being Geoffrey in the past life. Anyway, whether or not Athrun was a womanizer was the least of her worries. Right now, she had other things to focus on, such as eliminating that psychotic pink menace named Meer.

Nevertheless, Cagalli found herself sitting beside Athrun in class. Kira had decided to skip that day to dilly-dally with Lacus somewhere, leaving his sister alone with his best friend. Cagalli glared irritably at the clock, wishing the time would pass by more quickly. When class finally ended, Cagalli stood up in a rush to leave. It was time to confront Meer. She knew Meer would most likely be lying in wait for her at the entrance of the building, dressed in another revealing hot-pink outfit.

However, before Cagalli could head toward the door, Athrun caught her by the arm.

"Cagalli," began Athrun, "I'm really sorry about Meer. I've been asking her to stop harassing you, but she's not listening."

Cagalli tugged her arm out of Athrun's grasp. "It's fine, Athrun," said Cagalli a little sharply, "I was planning on dealing with her today."

"Cagalli..." Athrun paused, as he struggled to formulate his thoughts. Cagalli gazed back at him expectantly. Finally, he continued, "There's really nothing between me and Meer. We never dated."

"I don't really care," said Cagalli. Her words came out a lot harsher than she had expected.

For a moment, a hurt look crossed Athrun's face, but he quickly forced a smile.

"That's good."

Cagalli tried to soften her tone. "What I mean is, I'm not bothered by that. What I'm really bothered by is Meer, but it's not your fault that she's been harassing me. You don't need to feel responsible. Anyway, I can deal with her on my own."

Cagalli headed resolutely toward the exit, and Athrun trailed after her. He had a slightly unsatisfied expression on his face, as though there were more he wanted to say, but he remained silent.

* * *

><p>As usual, Meer ambushed Cagalli as soon as she stepped foot outside the lecture hall. Today, she was wearing nothing more than low-cut purple top and an ultra-short miniskirt that swayed alarmingly over her hips as she bounced around, threatening to reveal a lot more than the milky-white backs of her thighs.<p>

"My Lord!" giggled Meer, throwing herself into Cagalli's arms. Behind Cagalli, Athrun raised an eyebrow at the strange nickname.

"Meer," said Cagalli firmly, "I need to talk to you alone for a moment." She threw a glance at Athrun, who nodded in understanding.

"I'll wait for you over here," said Athrun, as Cagalli led Meer away to a more secluded spot.

"Meer," began Cagalli quietly. The whole situation was reminiscent of what had happened between Millicent and Ailwin in the past. Meer seemed to have sensed it too, as she turned to Cagalli with a worried expression.

Cagalli continued, "I know you think I am this Lord Ailwin, and that's why you've been following me around, but that was in the past. I'm not Ailwin anymore."

Meer shook her head. "No, you're Ailwin," she said stubbornly.

Cagalli massaged the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "No, I'm not. Even if we have memories of being Ailwin and Millicent, that doesn't make us who we are today. Look at me. I'm not even a male."

"That doesn't stop you from being Ailwin," argued Meer. Her voice was beginning to take on a whiny pitch. "Don't you ever wonder why we still have memories from our past lives? It's because we're destined lovers! We couldn't be together before, but we can be together _now. _We're meant to be together! We _have to_ be together!"

"Meer! Listen to me!" hissed Cagalli, grabbing her by the shoulders. "I'm _not_ Ailwin. I may have some of his memories, but he isn't who I am. Same with you. You're not Millicent. I don't know why we have these memories, but one thing I know for sure is that we can't be together in this life either. I'm asking you to stop following me around and harassing me!"

Meer clutched her head and began to howl. "No, no, no, no! This is exactly the same as last time! Nobody loves me, no one!"

"Meer," said Cagalli pityingly, "It's _not_ the same as last time. You're not being forced into a marriage. You have a new lease on life. It's up to you what you make of it."

"But it's destiny!" protested Meer. "We're meant for each other!"

Cagalli tried to reason it out with logic. "Look, just because both of us have memories, doesn't mean we're meant for each other. How can you be sure there isn't someone else out there with memories too?"

Meer suddenly stiffened as the new thought registered in her brain.

"It's _Lacus_ isn't it," she snarled suddenly.

Startled, Cagalli moved back. "Lacus? What does she have anything to do with this?"

Cagalli's genuine bewilderment seemed to push Meer over the edge, and she exploded.

"It's always her! She's always getting in my way! Always, always, always! Don't you get it? Lacus is Helen, and she's trying to steal you away from me again!" screeched Meer, gesticulating wildly. She began to tear at her long black hair. "I'm going to stop her. Once and for all. So she won't get in my way ever again!"

"No, no, no!" said Cagalli panicked. "What are you planning on doing? Stop it! Calm down!" She gripped Meer's arms firmly. "Look, I don't know what you're thinking, but Lacus has nothing to do with this. For heaven's sake, she's dating my brother Kira!"

"Is that what she's telling you?" sneered Meer. "Helen was always a liar. You almost married her back then, but she never loved you. She didn't care much when you broke off the engagement. All you were to her was a cover for her illicit affair."

"What?" said Cagalli blankly. "Meer, you're not in your right mind right now. You don't know what you're talking about."

"No, _you_ don't know what you're talking about! Helen stole you away from me, and then she dumped you because you weren't her _preference._ She had a secret she was hiding, and no one ever, ever knew. If only people knew what was behind that innocent face of hers-"

"Stop it, Meer," said Cagalli, shaking her. "Stop it. Snap out of it."

With a cry, Meer ripped herself away from Cagalli. "You don't know anything. You'll thank me later once I put a stop to that bitch!"

Horrified, Cagalli watched as Meer tore away down the pavement.

"Is there something wrong?" asked Athrun, jogging up. He had been watching the scene unfold from a distance, and had grown concerned when he saw Meer become increasingly agitated.

"Yeah," replied Cagalli soberly. "That girl is legitimately psychotic, and I think Lacus might be in danger."

* * *

><p>Frowning, Cagalli called Lacus for the third time in the past ten minutes. Once again, the call went to voicemail.<p>

"She's still not picking up?" asked Athrun, worriedly.

"Yeah, maybe she's in class or something," said Cagalli, rather troubled. "Besides, it's only been ten minutes since Meer left. She can't do anything in such a short amount of time, can she?"

Athrun shook his head soberly. "You don't know Meer like I do. It's best not to underestimate what she's capable of."

Cagalli paled. "I'll call Kira then. They should be together. I'll let him know to tell Lacus to watch out for Meer," said Cagalli, turning back to her phone.

To her relief, her brother picked up the phone, but her relief was short-lived when her brother told her that he had already waved goodbye to Lacus a little over half an hour ago.

"What's the big deal?" asked Kira, "Why do you sound so panicked?"

"You don't understand," replied Cagalli, fighting to keep her voice calm, "I just rejected that crazy bitch Meer, and she's gotten it into her head that I did it because of Lacus. I think she's planning on hurting Lacus, and Lacus isn't picking up her phone so I'm worried."

"Meer is after Lacus?" exclaimed Kira. His voice was edged with concern. "You don't want to cross that girl when she's out for blood. If you saw what she did to Athrun after he rejected her..."

"Exactly!" snapped Cagalli, impatiently, "That's why we have to find Lacus and make sure she knows that Meer is after her!"

"I think she should be in class right now," said Kira. "She should be in voice training, so I'm going to head over to the music building and see if she's there."

"Oh no," groaned Cagalli, "Meer's in the theater department, and they share facilities with the music majors. For all we know, Meer's already gotten ahold of Lacus."

"Don't say that," said Kira sharply. Cagalli could tell that he was extremely worried. "I'll let you know if I find her. Call Miriallia in the meanttime, see if she knows anything."

Cagalli hung up and immediately texted Miriallia. However, Miriallia only replied that Lacus was most likely in her voice training class.

Cagalli chewed nervously on her lip. If anything happened to Lacus-

Athrun laid a comforting hand on Cagalli's shoulder. "Just go to class for now," said Athrun soothingly. "Kira's already looking for Lacus, and I don't have class for the rest of the day, so I'll help too. I'll keep you posted."

Cagalli nodded, though still unsatisfied. She could not help but feel partially responsible for Meer, but all she could do at the moment was cross her fingers and wait.

* * *

><p>Nevertheless, several hours passed and there was still no word from Lacus. It was already late afternoon, and Kira and Athrun had already searched the music building twice as well as the rest of the affiliated performing arts facilities. Lacus, who was usually home by this time, had not yet returned, and Miriallia also reported that she had not come back for lunch either as she usually did.<p>

Cagalli wondered whether she should get the campus police involved. However, her plan was quickly shot down when Athrun pointed out that Lacus needed to be missing for a full twenty-four hours before they could file a report.

Cagalli, Athrun, and Kira regrouped in front of the music building.

"At this point," said Athrun, "We should probably assume that Meer already did something. The fastest way to find Lacus would probably be to call Meer."

Cagalli felt her blood run cold at the thought of Lacus falling prey to Meer, but she struggled to remain calm. She could tell her brother was also trying his best to keep his feelings in check.

"Alright," sighed Cagalli. "I'll call Meer then." Unwillingly, Cagalli pulled out her cell phone and dialed the number that Meer herself had entered. The phone only rang once before Meer picked up.

"My Lord!" screamed Meer ecstatically into the speaker. Her shrill voice caused Cagalli to wince.

"Hey Meer," said Cagalli, trying her best to sound gentle, "I had a change of heart, so I was wondering if we could meet up right now. I'll be waiting for you in front of the music building."

"I'll be there in two seconds!" squealed Meer. "I knew you would come around now that there's nothing holding our love back. I knew it!"

The lighthearted tone in which she was speaking gave Cagalli shivers. It was then she knew with a grave certainty that Meer had had a hand in Lacus's disappearance.

"I'll be waiting then," said Cagalli icily. However, Meer did not seem to notice the dangerous quality in Cagalli's tone, and happily hung up after blowing a few kisses over the phone.

True to her word, a few seconds later, Meer came bounding out of the music building. Her face fell when she saw Kira and Athrun also standing beside Cagalli.

"What are _they_ doing here?" scowled Meer, "I thought we were going to be alone."

Before Meer could back away, Cagalli reached forward and caught her firmly by the wrist.

"Meer," said Cagalli in the frostiest tone she could muster, "What did you do with Lacus? I know it was you."

For a moment, Meer seemed startled, but she quickly rearranged her face into a stubborn scowl. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Furious, Cagalli grabbed Meer by both her shoulders dug her fingers into her arms. Meer gave a small cry of pain, which Cagalli ignored. "Meer, you had better confess right now, for your own good. There's no use denying it. We know you did it."

With a shrill cry, Meer wrenched herself from Cagalli's grasp and began to run into the music building. Groaning, Cagalli, Athrun, and Kira gave chase, but were unable to catch Meer in time before she slipped into an elevator near the entrance.

"Oh no," moaned Cagalli.

"Let's go," said Kira, undeterred, as he motioned toward the stairs. Sighing, Cagalli followed the two boys as they raced up the staircase. Meer was turning out to be more trouble than she was worth.

They reached the second floor and checked the elevator. Noting that the elevator had stopped on the third floor, they bounded up another flight of stairs in time to see long black hair flip around a corner as Meer raced down a passageway.

Hot in pursuit, they finally managed to corner Meer at the end of a long corridor. Eyes darting around in panic, Meer realized that she was trapped.

"There's nowhere to run, Meer," said Cagalli threateningly. "Tell us where Lacus is, and this'll be over quick."

"Never!" spat Meer. Then she smirked. "You're too late anyway. She's already dead!"

Cagalli paled. With a howl of rage, Kira rushed forward, but Athrun roughly pulled him back.

Cagalli stepped forward instead.

"Meer," said Cagalli in the calmest tone she could muster, "I know you're bluffing. There's no use doing what you're doing. Even if Lacus weren't here, we still can't be together."

"No!" Meer covered her ears in denial. "It's not true! We're destined for each other!"

"Stop it, Meer," said Cagalli sternly. "I understand where you're coming from, and I sympathize. But please be reasonable! This is getting out of hand!"

Meer was sobbing now. She stumbled backward, and her back hit the window. Eyes widening, she turned and gazed contemplatively at it. In that short second, Cagalli knew what thoughts were crossing her mind.

"No!" cried Cagalli, bolting forward. But it was too late. Meer had already climbed onto the windowsill, and her feet were teetering over the edge.

"If we can't be together," cried Meer dramatically, "Then I'd rather die!" With those words, she hurled herself over the edge as Cagalli, Athrun, and Kira looked on in shock.

* * *

><p>The double doors of the operating room swung open as the doctor exited. Standing up from their seats in the waiting area, Cagalli and Athrun approached him.<p>

Lacus had been found about half an hour earlier by an unsuspecting music student who had come across her bound and gagged with duct tape in one of the instrument storage closets in the basement of the music building. The campus police were then notified, and they escorted her home. Kira was informed with a call from Miriallia. According to her, Lacus was still in shock over the incident, so Kira had rushed back to be with her. Athrun and Cagalli had stayed behind in the university's hospital to look after Meer.

"Your friend will be fine," the doctor was saying, "She just broke her left arm and leg and a few ribs. She's lucky she didn't break her neck and only got a nasty bruise on her head. She needs a few more stitches and we'll probably keep her under observation for another day or so, but she should be ready to leave within a week. Her broken bones will need a few months to heal, though."

"Thank you," said Athrun respectfully.

"Can we go in and see her?" asked Cagalli.

The doctor nodded. "She's a little out-of-sorts from the anaesthetic, but she should be awake. She's already been transported to room 218, so you can go meet her there. It's right down the hall."

Cagalli and Athrun thanked the doctor, and headed to the room. At the door, Cagalli turned to Athrun.

"Is it alright with you if I speak to her alone?" asked Cagalli.

Athrun seemed somewhat bewildered by her request, but nodded silently and moved away.

Cagalli entered the room and looked at Meer, who was lying limply on the bed. She was swathed in bandages, and only her face and a few tufts of long black hair were visible over the layers of gauze and the white sheet covering her body. Her face was slightly red and swollen, as though she had been crying, and she looked away when Cagalli entered.

"Meer," stated Cagalli softly. "How are you feeling?"

With a small sound, like an injured animal, Meer began to cry. She refused to look at Cagalli. Whether it was due to shame or something else, Cagalli didn't know.

"I'm so st-stupid," stuttered Meer through her tears, "I'm so s-sorry. I d-didn't mean to. I d-don't know what I was thinking."

Looking at Meer, Cagalli felt a rush of pity. Meer looked positively wretched, what with her blotchy face and her hair sticking out through the bandage around her head at odd angles.

"It's alright, Meer," said Cagalli gently. "We found Lacus. She's alright. She's a little shocked, but she's alright."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry," wept Meer over and over.

"Look, it's over now," said Cagalli seriously. "Just don't ever do something like that again."

"I won't, I promise," sobbed Meer. "I'm sorry," she apologized again.

They were silent for a few more moments as Cagalli searched for the right words to express what she wanted to ask.

"About Lord Ailwin," began Cagalli a little hesitantly. Meer froze at the sound of the name. "Do you remember anything else? Anything like a curse?"

Meer looked confused, though she tried her best to answer Cagalli's question. "Not really. At least, not anymore. The memories are a little fuzzier now, and all I remember is you and Lacus, and being forced into a marriage that I absolutely hated."

"I see."

Meer laughed a little bitterly. "I don't know what got into me. I was acting really crazy wasn't I? Lying here, I've done some thinking, and you were right. Who I was in my past life isn't who I am today. I've been given a second chance at life, and I'm going to make the best of it. I'm not being forced into an arranged marriage, and I'm doing something I love in school. I'm really really lucky, now that I think about it. I don't know why I was so insistent on being with you. I mean, I'm not even attracted to women!"

This made Cagalli chuckle a little. "I'm not attracted to women either, to be honest." She stood up. "I'm glad you've let go of what happened in your past life. I hope you get better soon."

Meer nodded, but looked a little confusedly at Cagalli. "So what happens now?"

"I don't know," said Cagalli, "You just continue living your life however you want, I guess. There might be some disciplinary action taken against you, but I'll try to convince Lacus not to press charges."

Meer looked gratefully at Cagalli. "Thank you."

Cagalli smiled back. "You're welcome."

* * *

><p>Cagalli plodded silently beside Athrun, deep in thought. It was evening now, and Athrun had offered to walk her home after they had grabbed a quick fast food dinner. The incident with Meer was whirling around in her head, and she silently chewed over all the events that had transpired that day. Her mind was still trying to process the impossibility of past lives, with Meer being Millicent and her being Lord Ailwin and Lacus being Helen. And the old lady at the senior home had spoken of a curse... A freezing current of foreboding coursed down Cagalli's spine. Other than Meer, nothing had happened so far... unless this incident was also part of the curse? Cagalli furrowed her brow. Whatever the curse was, it would probably be prudent to be wary in the future and to keep an eye out for strange occurences.<p>

A thought occurred to Cagalli that sent another shudder down her spine. If she was meeting people from her past life again in the present day, then wasn't there a high possibility that her killer was among them as well? Cagalli hoped that whatever grudge her killer had held against her in the past life would not transfer to the present day...

Cagalli glanced up at Athrun, who also seemed to be wrapped up in his own thoughts. He smiled down reassuringly at her, and Cagalli felt her cheeks warm a little.

Even if Athrun was a player, he was still a nice guy, concluded Cagalli. And there was a nagging sense of familiarity about him. Cagalli was becoming increasingly sure that Athrun must have been Geoffrey in his past life. They were both so kind.

* * *

><p>Athrun waited until Cagalli made it into her doorway before he turned around and headed home himself. He sighed tiredly. It had been an eventful day, what with Lacus's disappearance and Meer's suicide attempt.<p>

Meer... Athrun could not repress a groan at the memory. Meer had been a nightmare of a one-night stand. He had met her back in freshman year, when he was still reeling from his breakup with Lacus. He remembered his surprise when Lacus had told him that she had fallen for someone else, and then shown up the week later with the first friend he had made at the university on her arm. Even if his feelings toward Lacus were that of close friendship rather than love, it had still stung when she had picked someone else over him. As a result, he had become rather promiscuous, uncharacteristically accepting any woman who threw herself at him. Meer had been one of many, and he had expected that she would be gone in the morning just like the others, but she had remained to stalk him and harass him at every opportunity. He finally managed to be rid of her by bluntly telling her that he would never, ever date her, which forced him to bear the brunt of her fury for the next few weeks, waking up in the morning to find his car trashed, his apartment vandalized, as well as countless other destructive pranks. Since then, he had vowed to take his roommate Dearka's advice-to "never stick your dick in crazy," as Dearka so eloquently put it. But all women were crazy to some extent, and Meer had traumatized Athrun so much that he had had no desire to be with another woman-at least, until he met Cagalli.

Thinking of Cagalli caused Athrun to sigh again. The recent events hadn't cast him in a very favorable light. Thanks to Meer, Cagalli probably thought of him as a wanton degenerate, an utter sleazebag. It didn't help that Kira seemed to enjoy encouraging rumors depicting him as an indiscriminate ravisher of women, and that Cagalli's close friend, Miriallia, heartily disapproved of him. The only person who was on his side appeared to be Lacus, but he had overheard her once describing to Cagalli what a socially inept dork he was.

Athrun's shoulders slumped. His chances with Cagalli seemed to be rapidly diminishing. Not to mention, he seemed to have a rival, judging by how Cagalli was flirting with that freshman during lunch on Saturday, thought Athrun a little jealously.

Athrun stopped. He was acting completely besotted, which was completely uncharacteristic of him. He hadn't even known Cagalli for that long. And anyway, he didn't fully understand his feelings toward Cagalli. Most of the time, he felt an intense desire to possess her as well as a strange longing for her, but then there were those rare moments when he felt deep bitterness and resentment instead. It simply didn't make sense.

But despite it all, Athrun knew that he wanted to be with Cagalli. For now, he had to work on getting back in her good graces, and the first order of business would be to make it clear to her that he wasn't a womanizer. _Not that she cared anyway,_ thought Athrun with a slight pang as he remembered her cold response when he had tried to clarify that there was nothing between him and Meer. But it was still too early in the game to give up. Resolving to win Cagalli over, Athrun straightened his back a little as he walked home.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Thanks for all the reviews for the last chapter! This chapter was a monster to write and I'm afraid it's a little disjointed. But I hope you enjoyed it anyway! Please review, I appreciate any sort of constructive feedback. :D


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